Hearing Research最新文献

{"title":"Exploring the effect of cadaver head fixation in bone conduction hearing: Insights from finite element modeling","authors":"Jongwoo Lim ,&nbsp;Hyun Seong Shin ,&nbsp;Ivo Dobrev ,&nbsp;Johannes Niermann ,&nbsp;Christof Röösli ,&nbsp;Yong-Jin Yoon ,&nbsp;Namkeun Kim","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109354","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109354","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the effects of head fixation method on bone conduction (BC) responses using a full head finite element model validated against experimental data. Boundary constraint variables, including fixation strength, location, height, and neck support, were systematically analyzed by varying material Young’s modulus, adjusting fixation positions, and modifying the vertical position of fixation points. Among them, fixation strength had the most significant impact on ipsilateral and contralateral cochlear promontory velocities. Firm fixation minimized interface deformation, enabling the skull’s intrinsic mechanical properties to shape promontory velocities, while loose fixation produced uniform responses regardless of skull properties. Fixation location and height showed minimal effects on ipsilateral and contralateral promontory velocities, and neck support strength exhibited negligible influence due to the dominance of soft tissue compliance. Furthermore, since the Young’s modulus of the skull can vary across cadaver specimens, its influence on bone conduction responses under different boundary constraints was also examined by changing of Young’s modulus of the cortical bone. Young’s moduli of the cortical bone significantly influenced both ipsilateral and contralateral promontory velocities under firm fixation conditions but had limited effects under loose fixation conditions. Transcranial attenuation was largely unaffected by boundary constraints, reflecting the skull's intrinsic deformation behavior. These findings highlight the critical role of head fixation method strength in BC experiments. Under loose fixation, promontory velocities were little affected by fixation location, height, or Young’s modulus of the cortical bone. By contrast, firm fixation amplifies the effect of Young’s modulus of cortical bone on promontory velocity and transcranial attenuation, making it more suitable for isolating intrinsic skull behavior. These findings demonstrate that fixation strategy must be chosen to align with the objectives of BC research.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109354"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144587659","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Monocyte-dependent innate immunity prevents severe complications of acute bacterial infection in the middle ear in a murine model","authors":"Seong Hoon Bae ,&nbsp;Heang Ran Park ,&nbsp;Hyoyeol Kim ,&nbsp;Jinsei Jung","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109352","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109352","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Acute otitis media (AOM) is a common middle ear infection. The role of immune cells, particularly monocytes, in preventing complications of AOM remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the role of monocytes in immune response to bacterial AOM using a murine model.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Wild-type C57BL/6 mice were infected with GFP-tagged <em>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</em> (PA01) via intratympanic (IT) middle ear injection to mimic bacterial AOM. Monocyte depletion (MD) was performed using clodronate liposomes.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The survival rate after PA01 IT injection was significantly lower (<em>p</em> = 0.018) in the MD group (50.0 %, <em>n</em> = 18) than in the control group (100 %, <em>n</em> = 9). The MD group exhibited severe hearing loss 2 weeks after PA01 injection, whereas the control group showed transient hearing loss resolving by 2 weeks. Bacterial growth was significantly greater in the MD group than in the control group (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.001).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>MD causes uncontrolled bacterial growth and leads to more severe complications. Monocyte-mediated immune responses play a critical role in preventing the severe complications of AOM, suggesting a potential target for future therapeutic strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109352"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144571470","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Animal models of early-onset hearing loss: A systematic review of the effects on cognition, social behavior, vocalization, and neurobiological mechanisms","authors":"Joëlle D. Jagersma ,&nbsp;Mayerli A. Prado-Rivera ,&nbsp;Verena Deddens ,&nbsp;Kimberley E. Wever ,&nbsp;Jocelien D.A. Olivier ,&nbsp;Sonja J. Pyott","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109350","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109350","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Hearing loss in children can impair memory, learning, and communication. Despite the need for effective interventions, the mechanisms by which early-onset hearing loss affect cognition, social behaviors and vocalizations as well as the underlying neurobiological mechanisms remain poorly understood. Despite the wide use of animal models to investigate these mechanisms, it is unclear how experimental factors, such as species, hearing loss induction method, severity, onset, and duration, influence outcomes. To address this gap, we conducted a systematic review (PROSPERO: CRD42024515848) to synthesize the fragmented animal literature and clarify how experimental variables shape behavioral and neurobiological outcomes. Studies were identified through a comprehensive search strategy and screened both manually and with AI assistance. Outcomes were analyzed using vote counting and grouped into cognitive, social, vocal, or neurobiological domains. 33 studies met our inclusion criteria, with most focusing on cognitive (<em>n</em> = 20) and neurobiological (<em>n</em> = 15) outcomes and fewer on social (<em>n</em> = 9) and vocal (<em>n</em> = 9) outcomes. Severe hearing loss was most frequently investigated, although induction methods varied widely. Reporting quality was generally poor, often resulting in unclear or high risk of bias. Across studies, hearing loss had negative or neutral effects on cognition and vocalization, and negative, neutral, or occasionally positive effects on social behavior. Experimental parameters did not consistently explain direction of effects within each domain. The most commonly investigated neurobiological mechanisms included oxidative stress, cellular damage, neurogenesis, and neuroplasticity. Our findings highlight the complexity of outcome variability and underscore the need for standardized methods and better reporting to enable robust cross-study comparisons.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"467 ","pages":"Article 109350"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145045855","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Role of risk factors and their variable types in predicting noise-induced hearing loss using artificial intelligence algorithms","authors":"Zhengheng Zhang ,&nbsp;Longteng Jiang ,&nbsp;Meibian Zhang ,&nbsp;Yuan Pan ,&nbsp;Jinnan Zheng ,&nbsp;Anqi Liu ,&nbsp;Weijiang Hu ,&nbsp;Xin Jin","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109353","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109353","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Early prediction and warning of occupational noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) in workers is critical. This study aimed to explore the role of risk factors and their variable types to NIHL prediction through machine learning (ML) techniques. Data on exposure and NIHL were sourced from the Chinese National Occupational Disease Surveillance Programs and field measurements involving 15,160 workers. We developed predictive models based on logistic regression, three tree-based algorithms (random forest [RF], extreme gradient boosting [XGBoost], light gradient boosting machine [LGBM]), and tabular neural network [TabNet]. Eight features, including age, sex, noise exposure duration (ED), A-weighted equivalent sound pressure (L_Aeq,8 _h), kurtosis, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and hearing protection device (HPD) usage, were evaluated through logistic regression and ML feature importance analyses. Models were trained using both original and categorized versions of the variables to compare the predictive value of variable types and assess the applicability of each algorithm. Multivariate logistic regression indicated that age, noise ED, L_Aeq,8 _h, sex, and HPD usage were significantly associated with NIHL (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). Except for logistic regression, models built with original variable types using tree-based and TabNet algorithms outperformed those using categorized type (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). The LGBM model utilizing original variable types, achieved the best performance on the test set [area under the curve (AUC) of 0.745 (95 % CI 0.729–0.763)]. Feature importance analysis revealed that L_Aeq,8 _h (LGBM), sex (XGBoost), age (RF), and kurtosis (TabNet) were key predictive variables, consistent with logistic regression results. Our study concludes that continuous variable type of risk factors provided superior predictive value compared to categorized type for NIHL. Tree-based and TabNet algorithms offer effective methods for assessing and predicting NIHL.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109353"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144563780","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Deep learning models for predicting hearing thresholds based on joint stimulus-frequency otoacoustic emissions and distortion-product otoacoustic emissions","authors":"Runyi Xu ,&nbsp;Qin Gong","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109349","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109349","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>According to the dual-source generation hypothesis, stimulus-frequency otoacoustic emissions (SFOAEs) and distortion-product OAEs (DPOAEs) arise from different cochlear mechanisms, and both are capable of characterizing hearing loss. However, their joint application for hearing threshold prediction remains unexplored. This study developed an efficient deep learning (DL) model integrating SFOAEs and DPOAEs to quantitatively predict hearing thresholds. Training data for the model were collected from 94 ears with normal hearing and 401 ears with sensorineural hearing loss. Frequency-specific DL models were constructed across five octave frequencies (0.5–8 kHz), with inputs including amplitude spectra and corresponding signal-to-noise ratio spectra of both SFOAEs and DPOAEs. Self-extractors of the model were constructed using convolutional neural network (CNN) and recurrent neural network (RNN), respectively. Cross-validation demonstrated that the dual-OAE model achieved mean absolute errors (MAEs) of 5.17, 3.83, 3.96, 4.71, and 4.90 dB at 0.5–8 kHz, significantly outperforming single-OAE DL models (except DPOAE-based models at 0.5 and 2 kHz) and baseline machine learning models. By reducing the number of OAE stimulus levels, the efficiency-optimized model reduced testing time per individual to approximately 15 min while preserving accuracy. The proposed dual-source OAE (SFOAE and DPOAE)-integrated DL model achieves state-of-the-art accuracy in hearing threshold prediction, with its optimized efficiency establishing a foundation for further developing a practical clinical tool for objective hearing loss diagnosis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109349"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144563012","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Eye movement-related eardrum oscillations do not require current visual input","authors":"Hossein Abbasi ,&nbsp;Cynthia D. King ,&nbsp;Stephanie Lovich ,&nbsp;Brigitte Röder ,&nbsp;Jennifer M. Groh ,&nbsp;Patrick Bruns","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109346","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109346","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Oculomotor signals influence the neural processing of auditory input. Recent studies have shown that this connection extends to the auditory periphery: The phase and amplitude of eardrum oscillations was systematically influenced by eye movement direction and magnitude, a phenomenon called eye movement-related eardrum oscillations (EMREOs). Previous findings have suggested that EMREOs occur independently from auditory stimulation, but it is unknown whether they depend on the presence of visual sensory input or solely reflect efference copies of the oculomotor system. To distinguish between these two alternatives, we measured eye movements and eardrum oscillations in sighted human participants who performed free saccadic eye movements in darkness. Despite the lack of any sensory stimulation during eye movements, significant EMREOs occurred in all participants. EMREO characteristics were comparable to a separate control experiment in which participants performed guided saccades to visual targets and were robust to different types of eye tracker calibration methods. Thus, our results suggest that EMREOs are not driven by bottom-up sensory signals but rather reflect a pure influence of oculomotor signals on peripheral auditory processing. This indicates that EMREOs might play a crucial role in reference frame transformations which are needed for audio-visual spatial integration.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109346"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144535964","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Predicting variability in pediatric cochlear implant outcomes through synchronous brain activation patterns: Insights from fNIRS","authors":"Hsueh-Ching Tseng ,&nbsp;Huei-Mei Liu ,&nbsp;Pei-Hsuan Lin ,&nbsp;Tien-Chen Liu ,&nbsp;Lu Lu ,&nbsp;Chun-Ying Wang ,&nbsp;Chia-Feng Lu ,&nbsp;Chen-Chi Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109347","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109347","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objectives</h3><div>This study examined the relationship between cortical activation and auditory performance in pediatric cochlear implant (CI) users compared to normal-hearing (NH) controls using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). The aim was to identify neural predictors of CI outcome and to investigate post-implantation cortical plasticity.</div></div><div><h3>Design</h3><div>Eighteen pediatric CI users and 17 NH controls performed simultaneously non-speech discrimination and sentence recognition tasks while undergoing fNIRS recording. Cortical activation was assessed in bilateral temporal, frontal, and parietal regions, and correlation and regression analyses examined whether cortical activity predicted auditory performance variability.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>CI users performed similarly to NH controls on non-speech discrimination (92.6 ± 8.5 % vs. 91.7 ± 7.8 %), but had lower sentence recognition accuracy (76.9 ± 14.1 % vs. 96.1 ± 3.1 %, <em>p</em> &lt; 0.05). Hierarchical regression showed that dual-channel interactions in the CI group explained 68 % of the variance in non-speech discrimination (adjusted R² = 0.68, <em>p</em> = 0.002) and 61 % in sentence recognition (adjusted R² = 0.61, <em>p</em> = 0.001). Right middle temporal gyrus activation was positively correlated with non-speech accuracy (β = 1.20, <em>p</em> = 0.001), while left superior temporal gyrus activation was negatively associated (β = -0.83, <em>p</em> = 0.007). Left inferior frontal gyrus activation was negatively correlated with sentence recognition (β = -0.94, <em>p</em> &lt; 0.001), while left inferior parietal lobule activation was positively associated (β = 0.57, <em>p</em> = 0.007). In contrast, NH participants relied on a more flexible and integrated neural processing network, and no significant cortical predictors were identified, suggesting a less localized, more distributed activation pattern.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>These findings provide novel insights into neural plasticity and compensatory mechanisms in CI users, emphasizing the crucial role of cortical interactions in non-speech and sentence-level processing. The strong predictive power of hierarchical models highlights the potential of fNIRS in post-implantation cortical assessment. Given the cross-sectional design and sample size limitations, longitudinal research is needed to validate these findings and to further refine auditory rehabilitation strategies to enhance speech perception outcomes in pediatric CI users.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109347"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144535960","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Promoter polymorphism rs510432 in ATG5 affects the susceptibility of noise-induced hearing loss by altering the binding of C/EBPβ","authors":"Long Miao ,&nbsp;Man Qu ,&nbsp;Yu Xue ,&nbsp;Xiaoqin Li ,&nbsp;Lihong Yin ,&nbsp;Yuepu Pu","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109340","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109340","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is an occupational-related disease characterized by progressive sensorineural hearing impairment. Autophagy is thought as a key pathway mediated by highly conserved autophagy-related genes (ATGs) and plays a critical role in maintaining the homeostasis of cells, tissue and organisms. However, the potential molecular mechanism linking ATGs with NIHL are still relatively unclear. Here, we conducted a case-control study on 688 NIHL-afflicted cases and 667 normal hearing controls to investigate the relationship of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in ATG4C, ATG5 and ATG7 genes with the susceptibility to NIHL. We found that ATG5 rs510432 CT/TT genotypes significantly diminished the risk of NIHL compared to the CC genotype. Individuals with rs510432 CT/TT genotypes had significantly elevated mRNA and plasma levels of ATG5 than those with the CC genotype. Human plasma with the rs510432 CT/TT genotypes expressed obviously higher SOD, GSH-Px and Bcl-2 than that with the CC genotype, while opposite trends were observed for Caspase-3. Mechanistically, rs510432 could regulate the transcription of ATG5 by affecting the binding of C/EBPβ in the promoter region. Of note, C/EBPβ knockdown promoted the expression of ATG5 and LC3-II and simultaneously inhibited p62 expression to induce autophagy in HEI-OC1 cells. Moreover, C/EBPβ knockdown could increase the Bcl-2 expression, but decrease the expressions of Caspase-3, Bax and PARP in HEI-OC1 cells. In summation, our study provides initial evidence that ATG5 rs510432 is associated with the susceptibility to NIHL by altering the binding efficiency of C/EBPβ to ATG5 promoter in a specific allelic manner and it may act as a promising biomarker for NIHL susceptibility.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109340"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144523819","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"On the definition and implications of stimulus polarity for the recording of ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potentials","authors":"Torsten Rahne ,&nbsp;Hannah Schütz ,&nbsp;Julia Dlugaiczyk ,&nbsp;Laura Fröhlich ,&nbsp;Karl-Johan Fredén Jansson ,&nbsp;Bo Håkansson","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109344","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109344","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objective</h3><div>This study investigates the effects of mastoid stimulus polarity on the recording of bone-conducted ocular vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (oVEMPs). The goal was to analyze how different stimulus polarities, specifically condensation and rarefaction, influence the amplitude and latency of oVEMP responses.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Monocyclic sinusoidal tone bursts at 250 Hz and 500 Hz were used to stimulate the vestibular system in 21 participants with normal hearing and normal vestibular function. The stimuli were delivered through a B250 transducer in both condensation and rarefaction polarities. The output force waveforms were measured with an artificial mastoid and the time derivative of the force were calculated as surrogate for the jerk. For the different stimulus polarities and respective signal output, i.e., acceleration and jerk, the resulting oVEMP responses were compared.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Rarefaction stimuli generally produced clearer and larger n1-p1 responses compared to condensation stimuli. A pre-response n1 peak was observed for 250 Hz condensation stimulation, while 500 Hz condensation stimulation showed a secondary p1 peak following the main response. The output force and jerk, as recorded on an artificial mastoid, suggest that the inwards-directed force of the condensation phase is crucial for eliciting the oVEMP response.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Stimulus polarity plays a critical role in the measurement of bone-conducted oVEMPs, affecting both the timing and magnitude of the response and should thus be always checked and reported. For mastoid stimulation the most effective jerk for oVEMP recordings was achieved by rarefaction stimulation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109344"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144519146","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Neural and perceptual speech in noise processing among 6–8-year-old children: Relation to working memory","authors":"Anadel Khalaila-Zbidat,&nbsp;Hanin Karawani","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109345","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109345","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Young school-age-children learn literacy skills in classrooms that present challenging listening environments, particularly background noise. The ability to perceive speech in noisy environments relies on the interaction between cognitive and auditory processing. The present study investigates the relationship between speech in noise (SiN) perception and working memory (WM) in children aged 6–8, in addition it explores potential neural-cognitive-behavioral links in SiN processing.</div><div>Thirty-four normal-hearing children aged 6–8 years participated in the study. Neural SiN processing was assessed using the frequency following response to speech syllable /da/, collected in quiet and background noise, and analyzed for latency, amplitude, and fundamental frequency (F0) components. Perceptual SiN accuracy was examined using a sentence recognition task at three signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) levels (+3, 0, and -3 dB). WM was assessed using digit span tasks.</div><div>Background noise reduced both perceptual accuracy and neural SiN processing showing delayed latencies and lower amplitudes, and weaker F0 encoding, compared to the quiet condition. WM function positively contributed to SiN perception, with its effect moderated by the neural encoding of F0 in noise. Specifically, better neural encoding of F0 in noise decreased the positive contribution of WM to SiN perception. This study confirms the relationship between SiN perception and WM in children aged 6–8 years, highlighting the crucial contribution of cognitive factors, such as WM, in processing SiN, and reveals a neural-cognitive-perceptual interaction that modulates this contribution.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"465 ","pages":"Article 109345"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144513714","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}